Many attempts have been made in the past to construct a brassiere which will provide improved breast support and enhancement as is taught in the following patent disclosures:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,868,601, for example, teaches the use of externally placed support straps to pull the breast together so as to unnaturally create an enhanced cleavage line.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,098,330 employs elastomeric members to create compressive forces intended for use with added padding to push the breasts upwardly and inwardly toward each other. The arrangement is ackward and unwieldy as well as cosmetically unattractive.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,165,047 teaches a brassiere within a brassiere construction for use in combination with excessive padding to volumetrically enhance the breast. The inner cup is placed firmly against the breast, forcing the natural breast tissue away from the middle of the chest which is directly opposite to the desired force direction to create cleavage.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,213,842 incorporates a stretchable band in each breast cup to control the forces on the breasts when tension is naturally applied to the band and a force to move the breasts laterally toward one another. However, the use of stretchable bands actually limits the lateral excursion of the breast when tension is naturally applied around the chest and, as such, limits the degree of breast enhancement.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,595,243 contemplates adding pull elements to provide elevation of the breast and U.S. Pat. No. 4,413,625 teaches shortening the side panels of the brassiere to cause breast elevation.
Other known techniques involve different measuring systems to measure bra sizes so as to permit the design of the bra to accommodate differences in volumetric breast size as well as differences in the perimeter of the breast on the chest.
All of the above prior art brassiere designs contemplate the use of extra padding as an integral part of the design which is unwieldy from a manufacturing standpoint and none teach using an anthropometrical standard applicable to most women.
Accordingly it is an object of the present invention to provide a brassiere design which will cause breast enhancement, cleavage and support while maximizing the natural breast volume without any reliance on extra padding.
Another object of the present invention is to present an anthropometric standard which, will be utilized to create breast cleavage for average to slightly above average weight women using a brassiere construction that satisfies the finding that the base width of the average woman's breast changes minimally over varying chest circumferences and cup sizes. Adhering to this correlation is critical to the creation of cleavage in the said group of women.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a brassiere construction which will control breast cleavage using a design common to two breast cups with each cup formed of three panel sections designed with varying elasticity and different yield points so as to aid and reenforce the superior-medial force required to create cleavage.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an improved brassiere construction that can be economically manufactured for use an independent brassiere or incorporated into many different garments, such as swimsuits and evening gowns for sale as one garment.